God of Carnage at Flat Rock Playhouse

In search of an unusual, rewarding night at the theater? Look no further than God of Carnage, which kicked off Flat Rock Playhouse’s new Black Box series on Sept. 15 in hilarious fashion.

Directed by Lisa K. Bryant, French playwright Yasmina Reza’s 2009 Tony-winning dark comedy — translated to English by Christopher Hampton and adapted to the screen by Roman Polanski in 2011 under the name Carnage — works exceedingly well on the Leiman Mainstage. But instead of viewing it from the theater’s usual sea of padded seats in traditional, proscenium form, attendees are literally on stage with the actors, surrounding them from all four sides in rows of three.

In the middle, Dennis C. Maulden’s square living-room set with a chair in each corner indeed brings to mind the boxing ring that’s been used in the play’s promotional materials, and a bell might as well be rung as Annette (Rachel Burttram) and Alan (Brendan Powers) visit the NYC home of Veronica (Marcy McGuigan) and Michael (Scott Treadway) to discuss the playground fight between their 11-year-old sons.

Within moments, it’s clear just how fascinating an experience is in store for those fortunate to witness this theater in the round. Having traversed a ramp that runs down the center aisle — over what’s typically the Leiman's first few rows — to reach their seats, audience members huddle on folding chairs situated closer to each other than the cramped Fenway Park bleachers, and very much share the space with their fellow theatergoers.

As the parents’ dynamic becomes more complicated and tensions are elevated, a second performance of sorts arises within the spectators, and it’s wild to see where attendees’ attentions go, especially when characters take to the corners of the stage yet action continues in “the ring.” No one seat could possibly offer a simultaneous view of all four phenomenal actors, though the interplay between the cast and the small gestures that are caught make one want to return for another performance and see the verbal sparring play out from another angle.

While theatergoers who, er, don’t do well when people vomit or even discuss becoming sick will want to steel themselves ahead of time, the gradual breakdown of social contracts — suggesting that adults never truly stop being children — is more than enough to keep patrons seated and engaged throughout the play’s brisk 80-plus minutes.

God of Carnage is Flat Rock Playhouse at its best, depicted in an up-close-and-personal manner the likes of which us average folk rarely get to experience, especially from an equity theater. Get your tickets now and be able to tell your row-mates at future proscenium shows about the time you were on stage.

God of Carnage runs through Oct. 8. For details and tickets, visit FlatRockPlayhouse.org.

(Photos by Scott Treadway/Treadshots, courtesy of Flat Rock Playhouse)